Dancing Now
by phoebenpiper
Summary: The kiss was aggressive -- hungry and desperate.Ryan could tell it was something Chad had been longing to do for some time. Not longing to kiss RYAN, per se -- just longing to kiss ANY boy. CHAD/RYAN slash.


**Dancing Now --**by phoebenpiper

The first day of school. The first day of senior year. It's what Ryan and his classmates had been waiting for since kindergarten.

Yet as Ryan got ready for school, agonizing over which hat to wear, he realized he wasn't looking forward to today. He knew it was because he was going to see Chad for the first time in almost two weeks.

For the first time since Chad broke his heart.

Ryan smiled to himself -- he was becoming as melodramatic as his sister!

Because, if he was perfectly honest with himself, Chad hadn't really broken his heart. Ryan had known from the very beginning that Chad wasn't really interested in HIM.

But that hadn't stopped Ryan.

Not that he'd planned it. The whole thing had just happened. A spontaneous combustion of teenage boy heat and lust. Just what Ryan had been longing for.

Thinking back on it now, he couldn't help but grin as he remembered how it all started.

---

_It was the week after the Star Dazzle show. Ryan and Chad had become friends during rehearsals for the show, but Ryan had been secretly hoping for something more, ever since they'd played that first baseball game together. Ryan had felt the electricity between them on the diamond that day and had been longing for an opportunity to act on that attraction._

_And he finally got that opportunity not on the baseball diamond but on the golf course instead._

_On that hot Sunday afternoon, he and his mom had decided to play a leisurely 18-holes together. Since both Ryan and Mrs. Evans were terrible golfers, they'd decided that they would make do with just one caddy and simply share a single set of clubs. Mom, as always, had requested that Chad caddy for her -- she'd thought it would be more relaxed and "intimate" with just the three of them._

_How could she have known just how "intimate" that afternoon would turn out to be?_

_The front 9 had been a blast -- the three of them chatting easily together, sweating under the sweltering summer sun but enjoying the relative emptiness it produced on the course. They laughed as their shots went wide, not caring when they lost several balls to the water traps. Ryan was thoroughly enjoying himself, thinking this was the perfect way to spend a lazy summer afternoon._

_Just after the 10th hole, however, the jolly threesome was suddenly interrupted by Mrs. Evans's cell phone. After a brief conversation, Ryan was thoroughly disappointed when his mom announced she must go back to the clubhouse to deal with a "member emergency". However, before leaving, she suggested that he and Chad finish up the game themselves. _

_"You two boys might as well enjoy the day."_

_Chad had been reluctant to agree, and after Mrs. Evans left, Ryan realized why -- Chad was a TERRIBLE golfer! Almost as bad as Ryan, it seemed._

_Which was perfect. Because being on the same level, they could compete._

_And competing was what the boys did best!_

_"Nice swing!" Chad teased as Ryan's club finished its arc and landed on his shoulder, having completely missed the ball on the tee below._

_Ryan shrugged. "I was just practicing," he insisted, grinning._

_"It still counts as a stroke."_

_Ryan laughed. "Then I guess all your sand spattering in the last trap counts as strokes, too." Smirking, he added, "Though being a jock, can you even count that high?"_

_"Whatever, Theatre Boy. Can you even read?"_

_"Hey!"_

_Chad grinned evilly, realizing he'd struck a nerve. "From what I hear," he teased, "you need your sister to read your lines to you."_

_"Oh yeah?" Ryan shot back. "Well, from what *I* hear, you need Troy to tell you which basket to shoot at."_

_Ryan had been wary to make a basketball reference, since he didn't know much about the sport, but judging from Chad's response, his comment seemed to have hit its target._

_Though, Ryan noticed with surprise and delight, it wasn't the basketball reference itself but the mere mention of Troy's name that had caused Chad to react. _

_And Ryan wasn't going to let that go!_

_"You probably need Troy to do EVERYTHING for you," Ryan taunted. "Do you take him to the bathroom with you? Or into your bedroom at--"_

_Ryan's final "night" was barely audible as he suddenly found himself landing on his back in the grass, having been tackled to the ground by Chad. As Ryan fought to catch his breath, he looked up at the face above him, seeing the anger mixed with excitement in Chad's eyes. _

_"In your DREAMS, Evans," Chad teased menacingly, pinning Ryan's shoulders to the ground as he straddled the petite boy. "You just see what you wanna see."_

_Ryan was enjoying having Chad on top of him -- in fact, it was exactly the sort of thing he'd been hoping for all summer -- but he couldn't resist provoking the boy further._

_Bucking his hips up against Chad, Ryan teased, "You mean I just FEEL what I wanna feel."_

_Chad was so shocked, either by the movement or by the teasing comment, that he loosened his grip on the other boy. _

_Ryan, however, was shocked as well, for he'd never expected to ACTUALLY feel what he'd wanted to feel! _

_But after a moment of stunned stillness, Ryan regained his senses first. Realizing his friend was distracted, he quickly seized his opportunity and knocked Chad off of him. Ryan jumped to his feet and ran a few steps away, knowing that they both needed to cool down. And when Chad didn't follow him, Ryan figured it was best to just pretend the last interchange hadn't happened._

_Even though that wasn't going to be easy._

_Ryan quickly took a bad swing at the ball on the tee and then prompted, "It's your turn, Danforth," tossing the club he'd just used toward Chad. "Stalling isn't gonna help your score, you know."_

_Chad stood up, slowly grinning once again. "Don't you worry about me, Evans -- I can outscore you ANY day."_

_Ryan laughed. "So THAT explains it." When Chad shot him a confused look, he teasingly explained, "Unlike basketball, in golf the winner is the LOWER score."_

_Chad rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised YOU know that, considering how high YOUR scores usually are."_

_"Last I totaled, *I* was winning," Ryan bragged. In reality, he'd completely lost track of the score, since his mind was preoccupied with other things, but Chad didn't argue._

_"We'll just see about that," Chad said meaningfully, quickly placing a ball on the tee and preparing his club._

_But as soon as Chad started to swing, Ryan chanted, "Hey, golfer golfer!"_

_Chad stopped mid-swing, laughing, before preparing his club once again._

_And once again Ryan interrupted with "Hey, golfer golfer!_

_"Nice try, but it's not gonna work," Chad insisted._

_But it WAS working! It was working perfectly. And every time Chad started to swing his club, Ryan would start the chant:_

_"Hey, golfer!...Hey, golfer golfer!...Hey!...Hey, golfer golfer, SWING!"_

_"Cut that out!" Chad finally yelled through his laughter._

_"Make me!" Ryan challenged._

_"Oh, I'll MAKE you," Chad said, dropping the club and lunging at Ryan before he could even react._

_Ryan once again found himself on his back, the strong muscular boy straddling him, and he couldn't help but let out a giddy laugh._

_"Like THAT'S gonna stop me," Ryan teased. He raised his chin defiantly, lifting his head off the lawn so his face was mere inches from Chad's as he resumed his chant: "Hey, golfer golfer! Hey, golfer golfer! Swi--"_

_Suddenly Chad's lips were on his, forcing his head back into the grass. The kiss was aggressive -- hungry and desperate. Ryan could tell it was something Chad had been longing to do for some time._

_Not longing to kiss RYAN, per se -- just longing to kiss ANY boy._

_But Ryan was happy to fill that role. Because he'd been wanting Chad for WEEKS now, and he finally had him exactly where he wanted him -- lying on top, his tongue aggressively exploring Ryan's mouth._

_All thoughts ceased as Ryan closed his eyes and felt Chad's strong arms holding him down, smelled Chad's sweaty body over him, tasted Chad's lips on his, heard Chad's desperate moans of pleasure, felt Chad's curly hair run through his fingertips…._

_Ryan hadn't even realized his hands were free until Chad jerked away at his touch. Ryan's eyes shot open in time to see Chad's look of confusion and panic as he stared down at Ryan for a moment and realized what he'd just done. He then quickly sat back on his haunches, still breathing hard from the kiss._

_But Ryan wasn't ready for things to be over so soon. "That's it?" he blurted out without thinking before quickly pasting on a smile as if he was only teasing._

_"Dude, someone could see."_

_Ryan propped himself up on one elbow and glanced around the empty course surrounding them. "We're the only ones out here," he pointed out matter-of-factly._

_But that didn't set Chad's mind at ease. "So?! Someone could come along at any moment."_

_'And see you sitting on top of me,' Ryan thought with a smile, though he was desperately hoping for something more debauched. _

_And desperate times called for desperate measures._

_"There's a maintenance shed near here," Ryan suggested, trying to sound casual._

_Unfortunately, Chad reaction was anything but casual -- instead, he leapt to his feet and nervously looked around._

_"Where?! Did Bob the maintenance guy see us?!"_

_Ryan rolled his eyes. "No, there's a SHED near here." He stared up at Chad meaningfully. "Where we could…you know. Be alone."_

_Ryan held his breath, wondering what Chad would say to this suggestion. Had the kiss merely been a fluke? An accident? Given a chance to think, would Chad now regret what he'd done? Ryan sure hoped not, but as the silence continued, he began to fear the worst. Had he now ruined everything? Would Chad not want to be friends anymore? Ryan wanted to take back his comments, to just pretend that he'd never mentioned the shed or suggested continuing their liaison, but it was too late now to…_

_"We'd need a key."_

_When Chad finally spoke, Ryan was so caught up in his own panic that he didn't really hear what the other boy had said. "Huh?"_

_"The shed's locked, isn't it?"_

_Ryan grinned as he leapt to his feet and patted the pocket of his shorts. "Master key," he bragged. "I can unlock any door at Lava Springs with it."_

_"Cool," Chad said._

_"So…you wanna…?" Ryan asked tentatively, hoping that Chad's mention of the lock hadn't just been an excuse, a way to get out of it without losing face._

_Chad shrugged. "Sure."_

_Ryan wanted to jump for joy, he was so excited. He and Chad Danforth, alone in the maintenance shed! It was a dream come true!_

_"This way," Ryan said, starting out across the course._

_Chad instantly fell in step with him, which made the other boy pause._

_"Don't forget the clubs," Ryan said, nodding towards the golf bag and the club still lying on the grass. "We can't just leave them out here."_

_"YOU get them."_

_"Hey, I'M not the one getting paid," Ryan teased._

_At Chad's look of horror, Ryan quickly explained, "I mean, my MOM'S paying you. To CADDY!"_

_With a sheepish grin, Chad rushed back to grab the clubs. As he returned to Ryan's side, the golf bag slung expertly over his shoulder, the two boys set off across the course again._

_The walk was agonizingly long due to the heat of the afternoon and the uncomfortable, intense silence between them. Ryan wanted to dance, he was so excited to finally have a chance to be alone with Chad, but he knew that he couldn't read more into this than what it really was -- a one-time hook-up._

_Of course, being an Evans, Ryan could be very persuasive if he wanted to be, and he might be able to extend this hook-up into an ongoing thing._

_But regardless, they would still just be hook-ups. Because clearly Chad wasn't in love with him. Chances were he was in love with Troy, but it didn't really matter WHO Chad liked because it definitely wasn't Ryan._

_But Ryan decided he could live with that._

_When they FINALLY arrived at the shed, Ryan fumbled with the key. Truth be told, he'd never USED his master key to get into any of the maintenance sheds or closets so he wasn't even sure it would actually work. But thankfully it did, and a moment later the two boys found themselves inside a stifling hot, windowless enclosure filled with gardening implements._

_But now that they were here, alone, Ryan wasn't sure how to proceed. Should he make the first move, or would that scare Chad off? It was so dark in here, with only a few streams of light shining through the cracks in the wood, that Ryan could barely make out Chad's shape._

_"The light seems to be burnt out," Ryan said when he pulled on the cord suspended from the ceiling and nothing happened._

_Apparently Chad didn't care for Ryan suddenly found himself pinned to the door, Chad's lips once again aggressively on his. Ryan felt the master key slip from his hand to the dirt floor but figured they could worry about it later._

_In fact, he could worry about EVERYTHING later. For now, he was kissing Chad -- and that was all that mattered._

_But slowly Ryan began to realize how unbearably hot it was in the shed. He was sweating so much he'd already soaked through his undershirt and polo, and he couldn't even imagine how Chad was surviving in his polyester caddy jumpsuit._

_"Too…hot," Ryan gasped out when he could, hoping that they could take a time-out to strip out of their sweaty clothes._

_"Mm…yeah."_

_Chad's response clearly indicated the two boys weren't discussing the same meaning of the word "hot". Ryan therefore realized that he'd have to take matters -- or at least zippers -- into his own hands._

_Reaching out, he fumbled with the front of Chad's jumpsuit, which wasn't exactly easy considering how tightly their bodies were pressed together. Confused by the touch, Chad took a step back, looking down bewildered at his friend's hands on his chest. But it only took him a moment to realize what Ryan was doing, and he quickly took over the task himself, quickly undoing the jumpsuit and stripping it off. Underneath he wore only an undershirt and jockey shorts, and in an instant these were off as well, flung carelessly onto the dirt floor._

_By now, Ryan's eyes had grown somewhat accustomed to the darkness, so he was too busy admiring the view to realize he should be stripping, too._

_The other boy seemed annoyed by this. "Off!" Chad commanded, grabbing the bottom of Ryan's two shirts and roughly pulling them over his head, scratching his nose in the process._

_Eager to prevent other things from getting scratched by his friend's impatience, Ryan quickly stripped off his own shorts as he kicked off his flipflops._

_And then there they were -- both standing naked in a maintenance shed in the middle of the Lava Springs golf course. It wasn't exactly what Ryan had pictured during his summer daydreams but it was damn good! He wanted a moment to take it all in -- to take Chad all in -- and revel in his good fortune._

_But Chad didn't seem interested in taking a moment. In fact, he didn't even seem interested in looking at Ryan at all. Instead, he pushed the other boy back up against the splintery door and resumed the kiss, his eyes already closed long before their mouths met._

_Ryan was disappointed. He knew he wasn't exactly an Adonis, but he also knew his toned dancer's body looked good in the mirror, and it upset him that Chad didn't even bother to give him a once-over._

_It also confused him -- if Chad hadn't wanted to admire Ryan's naked body, then why had he been so impatient to take off Ryan's clothes?_

_He soon had his answer. As Chad pressed their bodies together, Ryan understood what the other boy had been after: the feel of their chests pressed together, skin against skin. It was incredible, and Ryan wanted to close his eyes and give in fully to the sensation._

_But he didn't. Because he didn't want to lose himself. He didn't want to forget that this wasn't real, that Chad had no interest in him as a person, only in him as an available male._

_Despite what his hands were now doing to Ryan!_

_And the rocking, thrusting motion that Chad had initiated wasn't bad, either. Ryan knew he wasn't going to last long like this._

_And from the way Chad was moaning, Ryan figured the other boy wouldn't last long, either. Ryan tried to slow things down, tried to make it last, but the hunger in Chad wouldn't be abated. So Ryan gave into the inevitability of it all, trying to savor Chad's taste and touch while he could._

_For this was so much better than he'd ever imagined._

_So much better…_

_BETTER…!_

_Ryan shook as he came, though Chad's grip was so strong that he barely moved. Within seconds, the other boy climaxed as well, and Ryan finally allowed himself to close his eyes._

_Slumped against each other, both completely spent, it took several minutes for the two boys to catch their breath and regain their strength. Eventually, the heat of their bodies against each other, coupled with the heat of the afternoon, became too much._

_That's when Chad stepped away, casting his eyes down shamefully as he murmured, "I'm sorry."_

_'You are?'_

_Luckily Ryan caught himself before he said it aloud. He knew exactly why Chad was apologizing -- it was exactly the same reason why Ryan had kept his eyes open throughout. _

_Because Chad hadn't really been making out with Ryan. The blond boy had merely been a substitute -- a placeholder -- for the person Chad really wanted to be with._

_And now that he'd used Ryan in such a way, Chad probably felt like he'd ruined their friendship. He couldn't even LOOK at Ryan now, and his guilt would no doubt cause him to start avoiding Ryan completely -- which was the LAST thing Ryan wanted._

_So summoning every ounce of theatrical training he could muster, Ryan casually walked over to the pile of clothes on the ground and shook the dirt out of his boxers. "Don't apologize," he said, surprised at how nonchalant he managed to sound. "I'm sure our maid can get these dirt stains out."_

_Chad looked up at his friend, meeting his eyes for the first time. Ryan could see the look of surprise and relief evident on the other boy's face and couldn't help but smile._

_Stepping into his boxers, Ryan coyly brushed the dirt from the front of them, adding, "These stains aren't nearly as bad as the ones I got at the staff baseball game."_

_As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Ryan froze, wondering if it'd been a bad idea to mention that game. After all, that game had been filled with sexual tension between the two boys and had been the start of Ryan's hopeless crush, so he worried that mentioning it now might make Chad uncomfortable._

_But Ryan's acting had put Chad so at ease that he grabbed up his own underpants, teasing, "Oh, you mean the day I wiped the ground with your sorry ass? Yeah, those were some bad dirt stains."_

_Ryan forced a smile, trying to remind himself that this was what he wanted -- for them to be friends again, for Chad to not be scared off by what had just happened._

_So Ryan pretended to sound offended as he tossed Chad his jumpsuit. "You didn't 'wipe the ground' with me! As I recall, you were totally impressed with my 'game'."_

_Chad grudgingly consented as he began to get dressed. "Yeah, your game wasn't bad…for a theatre geek," he added with a smirk._

_"Whatever!" Ryan teased, elbowing Chad. Unfortunately, his friend was only standing on one foot, stepping into his jumpsuit at the time, so the nudge knocked him completely off-balance. Laughing heartily, Chad fell to the ground, and hearing his sunny laughter cheered up Ryan immensely. He realized that things were going to be okay between them, that they would still be friends._

_Even though Ryan was still secretly hoping for more._

---

"Ducky, honey, you ready yet?"

Ryan jumped, surprised out of his reverie, and turned to see his mom peaking around the slightly open door.

"Almost," Ryan said, quickly turning to grab up his book bag.

"Look at my dashing boy," Mrs. Evans said, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes as she took in her son. Walking over and placing her hands on either side of his face, she proclaimed, "I'm so proud of you."

Ryan loved the way his mother's warmth simply washed over him, making him feel loved and accepted. He smiled down at her lovely face and teased, "Proud of what? I haven't survived senior year yet, or even the first day."

His mom laughed before explaining, "I'm just proud of you for being you. I couldn't have asked for a better, sweeter son."

Ryan blushed at the compliment, wondering if his mom would feel the same way if she knew how he'd spent his summer.

---

_Ryan walked around the outside of the Lava Springs main lodge, heading for the hoop out back. Chad was scheduled to play a game of one-on-one after work and had invited Ryan to come watch him "wipe the floor" with Troy. _

_It had been almost a week since their liaison on the golf course, and Ryan was thankful that he and Chad had fallen back into their easy friendship. Ryan still couldn't help but hope for more, but he was at least thankful that their make-out session hadn't ruined things between them._

_Approaching the back court, Ryan heard raised voices and stopped to listen, not wanting to interrupt._

_"But you promised we could play today!" Chad sounded upset._

_"But Jason needs my help with his car this afternoon," Ryan could hear Troy explaining. "He thinks it's his alternator, and I promised to take a look at it after work."_

_"Oh, and now that you've fixed one truck with your dad you're an EXPERT on cars?" Chad's voice was beyond bitter. "That's just great -- YET ANOTHER skill the great Troy Bolton can share with everyone."_

_"Man, WHAT is your problem?!"_

_"My problem is that you spent the first half of the summer standing me up for Sharpay and the U of A guys, and ever since you've been standing me up for Gabriella. And now Jason and his car?! What the hell?! I just…I don't get why I obviously rank so low on your list of priorities 'cuz…'cuz I THOUGHT we were best friends!"_

_Ryan cringed as he heard Chad's voice crack on the last few words. The bitterness was gone from his friend's voice, replaced instead by hurt._

_"What's the big deal?" Troy asked, clearly oblivious to Chad's tone. "We can just play tomorrow, right?"_

_"Right…unless someone BETTER comes along," Chad added cynically._

_Ryan heard Troy give a frustrated sigh. "You know, you USED to be fun to hang out with, Chad. But if you're gonna act like THIS, maybe I don't WANT to spend time with you!"_

_An uncomfortable silence followed, and Ryan wondered if Troy had left. Eventually, however, Troy added, "I gotta go. I'll call you tonight."_

_Ryan waited until he was sure Troy was gone before he made his presence known._

_"Hey," he tentatively said in greeting, watching as Chad angrily dribbled his basketball._

_"There's not gonna be any game," Chad pouted, not taking his eye off the basket as he went up for a shot._

_"Yeah…I heard."_

_Chad didn't answer -- he merely got the rebound and stood there dribbling, the bouncing ball the only sound in the uncomfortable silence that followed._

_Finally, without preamble, Chad yelled, "Why does he have to be such a JERK?!" _

_On the final word, Chad flung the ball angrily at the basket. However, the shot was too low and bounced off the rim -- if Ryan hadn't instinctually put up his hands to protect his face, the ball would've smacked him directly in the nose._

_Once the shock of having almost been clobbered ebbed, Ryan offered tentatively, "Well, I'm not very good, but WE could play." He attempted to dribble the ball, adding, "You know, to let off some steam?"_

_Chad walked over and easily stole the ball from Ryan's high dribble. "Let's go golf," he said pointedly._

_Ryan laughed. "Golf? I would think basketball would be better at letting off…oh." He'd finally caught the look in Chad's eyes and realized that it wasn't the game of the golf but the golf course itself -- or, more specifically, the maintenance shed -- that was on Chad's mind._

_Ryan's heart skipped a beat at the suggestion, but he didn't revel walking all the way across the golf course just to be together in a dirty shed._

_"There's other places we could go," Ryan suggested, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his brand new master key, having never found the one he'd dropped last week._

_"Yeah," Chad said simply, and Ryan realized it was up to him to lead the way._

_As the two boys walked back inside the lodge, Ryan frantically tried to think of where they could go. It would need to be someplace deserted, where they wouldn't have to worry about being walked in on. _

_"My dad's gone on business for a few days!" he suddenly blurted out as the thought occurred to him. _

_At Chad's nod, Ryan led the way to his dad's office, realizing how freaked out his dad would be if he knew what Ryan was planning to do there._

_Once inside, Chad waited until his friend had bolted the door behind them before grabbing Ryan and kissing him._

_Unlike the first time, this kiss wasn't desperate -- it was angry! Ryan cried out as Chad bit hard on his lip, but the other boy didn't apologize or slow down. Ryan did his best to keep up, thankful that he wasn't confined to a hot splintery door like he'd been the last time. He untucked Chad's workshirt and rubbed his hands across his friend's bare back, just as Chad was doing to him, resisting the urge to close his eyes, reminding himself once again that he needed to keep his distance -- emotionally, at least, since physically they were as close as could be._

_It wasn't until Chad started pushing him down that Ryan realized the other boy's hands were on his shoulders. Ryan didn't resist the push, falling to his knees and licking Chad's belly as he began to undo his friend's fly. He'd been longing to do this, longing to taste Chad, ever since he'd first seen the other boy naked in the dimness of the maintenance shed, so he was happy to seize the opportunity he was being given._

_Ryan carefully pulled Chad's pants down, releasing the hard dick from the jockey shorts. Ryan took a moment to admire it before tentatively putting his hands on his friend's thighs and taking the head in his mouth. It tasted like heaven, even better than Ryan had imagined, and he breathed in deep the musky scent of the other boy's sweat._

_But Chad was impatient, and suddenly his hands were on the back of Ryan's head, holding it in place as Chad thrust into him. Ryan hadn't been expecting it and gagged, almost choking as he willed himself not to throw up. The other boy, however, didn't seem to notice the trouble Ryan was having and thrust a second time. A third._

_Ryan eventually figured out how to relax his throat muscles so that he no longer gagged and slowly began to fall into the rhythm of it. After awhile, he began to enjoy himself and even started to move forward, meeting Chad's dick as his hips thrust forward. _

_Once Ryan began setting his own rhythm, Chad released his hold on his friend's head, putting one hand on Ryan's shoulder while grabbing behind him onto Mr. Evans's desk with his other hand to give himself more leverage._

_Ryan knew he wasn't very good -- who IS their first time? -- but it didn't matter because soon Chad was coming in the other boy's mouth. Ryan did his best to swallow it all, desperate not to stain his father's carpet._

_Once spent, Chad slumped back against the heavy mahogany desk as Ryan sat back on his haunches, proud that he'd done as well as he had and thankful that they'd left no evidence behind._

_"How'd I do?" Ryan asked without thinking before quickly adding, "It was my first time -- I hope it was okay."_

_A slow grin spread across Chad's face, and Ryan was happy to notice that the anger was completely gone from his friend's eyes._

_"Not bad," Chad teased. "I'm sure you'll get better with practice."_

_Ryan smiled -- he knew exactly what he and Chad would be doing for the rest of the summer._

---

"Is this mother-son love fest gonna be over soon? Because I don't want to be late for the first day!"

Ryan turned to see his sister standing in the doorway of his room, impatiently tapping her foot.

"Ryan will be right down, Kitten," Mrs. Evans said.

Sharpay let out a frustrated sigh and stormed off.

"She's in a bit of a mood this morning," Ryan's mom explained as he headed out. "But try to enjoy your first day, Ducky."

"Thanks, Mom."

Ryan hurried downstairs and out to his sister's pink car, which she'd already started. Before Ryan even had the door shut, Sharpay peeled out of the driveway and sped off down the street, her brother holding on for dear life.

"So what's up, Shar?" Ryan asked tentatively, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

"Zeke." She took a dramatic pause before continuing, "He dumped me last night."

Ryan was so shocked, he was thankful he wasn't driving for he might've run them off the road. "He did what?!"

"Dumped me! ME! Can you believe it?!"

Ryan shook his head, still finding it hard to comprehend. Zeke had had a crush on Sharpay for YEARS. And after the Star Dazzle show, when she'd finally agreed to start dating him, he'd been so happy that the Wildcats practically had to scrape him off the ceiling for the rest of the summer.

"So what'd you do?"

"I threw my shoe at him and demanded that he drive me home."

Ryan couldn't help but laugh. "No, I mean what did you do to make him dump you?"

Sharpay gasped. "Why would you think *I* did something?"

"Because everyone knows Zeke's madly in love with you. You must've done SOMEthing."

Sharpay didn't answer, instead peeling around a corner so fast that Ryan thought the car might tip over.

But after several more minutes of insane driving, Sharpay mumbled something.

"What?" Ryan asked, finding it hard to hear over the noise of the convertible.

"I called him 'Troy', okay?!" Sharpay snapped, though Ryan was certain she was angrier with herself than at him. "We were making out and…it just kinda slipped out."

Ryan was in shock. "Wow" was all he could reply.

"I apologized!" Sharpay insisted. "Right away, too, before he even asked for it. But he wouldn't listen to me, Ry! He said that…he said he deserved someone who liked him for HIM." She took her eyes off the road to look at her brother, and Ryan could see them brimming with tears. "I DID like him for him…eventually! And I really want him back. So what should I do, Ry?"

Ryan shrugged. He had no advice to give.

---

_The rest of the summer zoomed by, filled with dancing, sunbathing, playing baseball,…and Chad. Ryan had never seen the inside of so many maintenance closets, storage sheds, and pantries in his life! _

_Not that he was complaining -- his moments with Chad were incredible. As the summer wore on, he'd slowly gotten better at giving blow jobs, and Chad had even reciprocated with a hand job or two. After awhile, Ryan even began to close his eyes sometimes, giving in fully to the sensations. After all, if Chad kept seeking him out, surely that meant the other boy liked him. Right?_

_Everything was going great until the night in the members' only locker room. Everyone else had gone home after a particularly hot, sweaty day, so Ryan suggested that they take a shower together before he drove Chad home. His friend seemed particularly excited at this suggestion, and the two boys raced to strip out of their clothes and into the deserted public showers._

_Ryan had realized that kneeling on linoleum tile wouldn't be fun, so he figured they could do something different for a change. As the warm water began to beat down on their bare bodies, Ryan produced a bar of soap and started lathering it up between his hands._

_"What's that for?" _

_Ryan smirked. "You've never seen soap before? Man, you ARE a stupid jock."_

_Chad lunged playfully at Ryan, who hopped backwards, holding the soap behind his back. "Nuh-uh -- this is MY soap."_

_"Yours, huh?" Chad teased, a twinkle in his eye. "Are you planning to drop it?"_

_Ryan laughed. "Not quite -- I had something else in mind." He put his hand on Chad's chest and pushed him back under the shower spray. "Now close your eyes and let me clean you."_

_Chad grinned and obediently closed his eyes. Ryan suddenly felt giddy with power, and he decided that, since he was in charge, they were going to take things slow for a change._

_Painstakingly slow._

_Ryan began to rub the lather on Chad's chest, appreciating each toned pectoral and gently tracing the lines of his friend's abs, causing Chad to tremble._

_"Eyes closed, mister!" Ryan commanded before moving on to Chad's arms, massaging each bicep as he lathered up the soap. _

_He then knelt down and began lathering Chad's feet and ankles. Chad moaned, and Ryan knew that it was working like a charm -- taking it slow would give Chad the best climax of his life. _

_Ryan slowly worked his way up, over Chad's shins, past his knees, and gently up his thighs. As Ryan got higher, Chad started thrusting his hips, obviously wanting more._

_"Nuh-uh," Ryan taunted, releasing Chad's thighs and standing up. "Not yet."_

_Ryan then grabbed Chad's shoulders and gently rotated. Amazingly, Chad was like putty in his hands and turned around without question, his eyes firmly shut, slow satisfied moans escaping his lips._

_Once Chad was turned, Ryan paused a moment, taking in his friend's incredible backside. It was a side that Ryan never got to see, or at least never in a place where he could take the time to fully appreciate it, so he savored the moment._

_Once he'd taken it all in, memorizing it for later, he resumed his lathering, beginning with Chad's muscular shoulders and slowly moving his way down. _

_But once again, right before he reached the good stuff, he stopped and knelt down, returning to Chad's ankles. As he slowly worked his way up, he could tell that the other boy's knees were weak with ecstasy, and Ryan was thrilled to know that he was responsible._

_When Ryan finally reached Chad's buttocks, the jock involuntarily tensed up._

_"Relax, relax," Ryan whispered soothingly in his friend's ear. "I promise -- I'm not gonna do anything you won't like."_

_Chad began to relax somewhat, and Ryan sensuously massaged the muscular buttocks with the lather, eliciting loud moans of pleasure from the other boy._

_Slowly, Ryan's hands began to work their way around to Chad's front, slowly lathering the other boy's privates. He gently pressed himself against his friend's backside and felt Chad's buttocks clench once again. _

_"It's okay," Ryan comforted, "I'm not gonna hurt you."_

_Penetrating wasn't what he was after -- he just wanted the feel of Chad against him. He began stroking the other boy, slowly at first and then gradually speeding up. With his arms wrapped around his friend's waist, Ryan rested his cheek against the other boy's shoulder, his eyes closed, concentrating on the feel of Chad's backside against his own hardness. He waited for Chad to initiate the thrusting, and soon their hips were rocking back and forth in unison. The water from the shower had all but washed the lather off, but neither of them seemed to mind the added friction. _

_Ryan came first, and the feel of it against Chad's back made the jock's breath catch. Ryan slumped against his friend, his arms still wrapped around him. _

_Although Ryan's hand had slowed, his energy spent, Chad continued to thrust his hips back and forth against it. He gradually sped up his thrusts, the friction getting more and more intense as he went faster and faster until he finally climaxed, crying out "Troy!"_

_As the name echoed in the large shower, Ryan felt his face redden, completely humiliated. He should've realized that Chad would've had locker room fantasies about Troy, yet he'd stupidly fed right into them._

_He let go of Chad and took a step back, putting some distance between them. He was devastated, his heart broken. He couldn't stop chastising himself for not keeping his distance, for allowing himself to think that Chad actually liked him. _

_Ryan had no one to blame but himself. From the beginning he'd known Chad liked someone else and proceeded at his own risk._

_Now that the unthinkable had happened, Ryan didn't even have a contingency plan. All he could do was stand there, feeling like a fool. _

_He wondered if he should just shrug it off, as he'd done with Chad's apology that first time, and pretend that it didn't matter. But then he realized that they hadn't thought to bring towels with them -- there'd simply been too much to think about at the time for either of them to consider the consequences of the shower._

_"I'll…uh…go grab some towels," Ryan said awkwardly, hurrying out of the shower._

_It wasn't until he returned a moment later that he realized that Chad was simply standing under the hot shower crying._

_"Chad?"_

_Chad swallowed hard and wiped the tears from his face before shutting off the water and grabbing the towel Ryan offered. "Thanks," he murmured into the thick Turkish towel as he dried his wet face._

_Ryan was frozen in place. He certainly couldn't continue with his plan to casually crack a joke and pretend like this had never happened, but he couldn't think of any other options._

_Chad lowered his towel from his face and looked Ryan in the eyes. "I can't do this anymore."_

_"Why not?" Ryan's voice sounded pathetic even to his own ears as the panic started to set in. True, he was being used, but it wasn't as if he was getting nothing out of these get-togethers. He NEEDED to be with Chad, even if Chad wasn't truly with him. They could get past this and just go back to the way things were and…._

_"Troy's been my best friend since kindergarten," Chad continued, his gaze turning glassy as his eyes began to fill with tears once again. "I can't do this to him. I can't continue to pretend I…." His voice cracked, and he swallowed down the tears. Then, almost to himself, he added, "I'm gonna see if Taylor will take me back. Then we can just return to the way things were, the way things SHOULD be, and Troy won't ever have to know I…."_

_Chad trailed off, and the two boys merely stood there in silence for what seemed like an age. Then Chad quickly strode out of the showers, and after a moment Ryan heard the door to the locker room close. It wasn't until later, when Ryan was home safe in bed, crying himself to sleep, that he realized Chad must've had to call his mother for a ride home._

---

Hearing Sharpay's car door slam brought Ryan back to the present.

"Planning on skipping the first day?!" his sister snapped at him, obviously annoyed that he hadn't come up with any brilliant plans on how to get Zeke back.

As she stormed off without him, Ryan slowly got out of the car and made his way towards the school.

As he climbed the front steps, he noticed Zeke leaning on the side railing, staring wistfully up at the front door where Sharpay had just disappeared.

Ryan went over to the boy, smiling sympathetically. He wanted to say, "I know what you're going through," but didn't want to have to explain himself. Instead, he merely offered, "She's really sorry. She does like you, you know."

"Yeah." Zeke shrugged. "Not enough, though."

Ryan nodded -- he certainly couldn't argue with that.

"But she wants you back," he said, hoping the same would be true about him and Chad. Of course, Chad had made no effort to contact Ryan since that night in the shower, instead leaving his friend to spend the rest of the summer alone, dancing by himself and regretting how he'd gotten so attached.

"I want her back, too," Zeke said, shaking his head and walking inside with Ryan as the first bell rang. "But I can't do that to myself. I deserve better." He shrugged again, adding, "I'm sure there's someone out there who will appreciate me for me. And in the meantime, I have my baking…and work…and school…and football practice." Zeke laughed, smacking Ryan playfully on the back. "So who has time for a girlfriend anyway, right?"

Ryan returned a halfhearted laugh before heading off by himself down the hallway. Reaching his locker, he dialed the familiar combination and opened it, surprised at how empty it seemed.

"Evans, can we talk?"

Two minutes ago, Ryan would've been thrilled to hear Chad's voice behind him. But Zeke's words were still ringing in his ears, and now Ryan wasn't sure how he felt.

Chad took a step closer, looking nervously up and down the hallway before whispering in Ryan's ear, "I told Troy. Not everything, of course, just about…you know. Me. And he understands…as well as can be expected, at least. So we're okay now."

Chad took a step back and smiled expectantly at Ryan. "So…I was thinking…maybe you and me…after school?"

It was exactly what Ryan had been hoping to hear for the past two weeks when he'd been off dancing alone, trying to blow off steam by doing what he did best.

But thanks to Zeke, Ryan's eyes were now truly wide open. After all, he was an Evans -- he shouldn't settle for someone who didn't fully appreciate him.

Besides, now that school was starting, he'd have plenty of things to keep him busy. And of course, he'd still have his dancing, too. Someday he'd find someone to share his 'newfound talents' with -- but for the time being, he'd stick to his old ones.

Ryan gave Chad a friendly pat on the shoulder. "I'm glad you cleared things up with Troy -- I know how important he is to you."

He shut his locker and walked past his friend down the hallway towards homeroom as the tardy bell rang.

"And…us?"

Ryan turned to see Chad staring after him, the same look in his friend's eyes that Sharpay had had that morning -- loneliness filled with regret.

But Ryan was looking for something more than that.

"Sorry," Ryan said, shaking his head. "The summer's over. I'm dancing now."

THE END


End file.
